Attachment for telephones.



J. KUHN. ATTAGHMBNT FOR TELBPHONES. APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 16, 1009.

Patented May 3, 1910.

'b/A I FNOHLLIINQOIWWA WAINNUYON. I). G

JOSEPH KUHN, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

ATTACHMENT FOR TELEPHONES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed September 15, 1909.

Patented May 3, 1910.

Serial No. 517,946.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOSEPH KUHN, a subj ect of the Emperor of Germany, residing at Pittsburg, in the county of Allegheny and ments, and the primary object of my invention is to provide a telephone with a device that can be used for advertisement purposes, also as a sign for notifying a person of the cost of using the telephone.

Another object of this invention is to provide an attachment that can be used in connection with a wall or desk telephone, the device being so located as not to interfere with the use and operation of the telephone.

I attain the above objects by a device that has been particularly designed for stores and ofiices where it is the practice of parties to use the telephone without considering the cost of such use, and by calling such matters to their attention, the use of the telephone will be paid for, or in other instances, the telephone not used.

My telephone attachment will be hereinafter considered in detail in connection with the drawing forming a part of this specification, where I have illustrated what I believe to be a practical embodiment of the invention; but still desire it to be understood that the structural elements thereof can be varied or changed within the scope of the appended claims without departing from the spirit of the invention.

In the drawing :Figure 1 is an elevation of a wall telephone equipped with my attachment, Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a detached device, Fig. 3 is an end elevation of a desk telephone equipped with my attachment, Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a sign card forming part of the device, and Fig. 5 is a plan of a detached device.

In the accompanying drawing, 1 denotes a plate having the upper edge thereof provided with a lateral flange 2 and the ends thereof with forwardly projecting lugs 3 serving functionally as bearings for a revoluble shaft 4. Attached to the shaft 4 adjacent to the lugs 3 is a sign plate 5, this plate being provided with integral straps 6 adapted to be bent around the shaft 4 and connected to the body of the sign plate, as

at 7. To prevent the straps from slipping upon the shaft 4, they can be riveted or otherwise secured to the shaft 4. One side of the sign plate 5 is adapted to hold an advertisement, while printed or otherwise marked upon the opposite side is a notice, for instance Call 10 cents.

One end of the shaft 4 protrudes beyond one of the lugs 3 and is provided with a fixed grooved wheel 8. Attached to the periphery of the wheel 8 is a cable or cord 9 which is adapted to partially wind upon the wheel 8.

As shown in Fig. 1 of the drawing, the plate 1 is secured to the wall board 10 above the transmitter 11 of the telephone, and the cable or cord 9 is attached to a lever 12 pivotally connected to the side of the battery box 13 adjacent to the receiver fork 14. The lever 12 is adapted to loosely engage the receiver fork or may be attached thereto. The weight of the lever 12 is sufficient to maintain the sign plate 5 in the vertical ralsed position shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the sign plate resting against the forward edge of the lateral flange 2. When the receiver 15 is removed from the fork 14, the lever 12 is raised sufficiently to allow the sign plate 5 to swing to a lowered position and expose that side shown in Fi 4 of the drawing, containing the notice gall 10 cents.

When my improvement is to be used in connection with a desk telephone, the pedestal 16 thereof is provided with a bracket 17, and to the upper end of the bracket is secured the plate 1, whereby the sign plate 5 will be supported above the transmitter 18. The lever 12 is then pivotally connected to the bracket 17 adjacent to the transmitter fork of the desk telephone.

Then the telephone is not in use, the advertisement carried by one side of the sign plate 5 is displayed, and when the telephone is placed in use, the sign plate is immediately lowered to notify unauthorized users of the telephone that they are indebted either to the telephone company or the party controlling the use of the tele hone.

The attachment can be ma e of light and durable metal and the advertisement and notice either painted upon the sign plate 5 or placed thereon by the use of suitable labels.

Having now described my invention what I claim as new, is j 1. The combination of a supporting plate having its top formed with an outwardly extending stop flange and further having at each side thereof below the flange a forwardly projecting apertured lug, a shaft journaled in said lugs and projecting outwardly from one of the lugs, a Sign plate fixed to said shaft and normally maintained at an elevated vertical position against said stop, and releasable means connected with the projecting end of the shaft for normally holding the sign plate in an elevated vertical position and adapted when released to allow the sign plate to automatically swing by gravity to a lowered vertical position.

2. The combination of a supporting plate having its top formed with an outwardly extending stop flange and further having at each side thereof below the flange a forwardly projecting apertured lug, a shaft journaled in said lugs and projecting outwardly from one of the lugs, a sign plate fixed to said shaft and normally maintained at an elevated vertical position against said stop, a pulley fixed to the projecting end of the shaft, and a releasable means connected with said pulley for normally maintaining said sign plate in an elevated vertical position and adapted when released to allow said sign plate to swing to a lowered vertical position.

3. The combination of a supporting plate having its top formed with an outwardly extending stop flange and further having at each side thereof below the flange a forwardly projecting apertured lug, a shaft journaled in said lugs and projecting outwardly from one of the lugs, a sign plate fixed to said shaft and normally maintained at an elevated vertical position against said stop, a pulley carried by the projecting end of said shaft, a flexible member connected to the pulley, and a releasable lever attached to the flexible member and normally maintaining said sign plate in an upper vertical position and adapted when released to allow said sign plate to swing by gravity to a lowered vertical position.

4. The combination of a plate provided with an angular disposed portionatits top constituting a stop, a rotatable shaft carried by the support, a sign plate fixed to the support and normally held in an elevated vertical position against said stop, and a releasable means connected to the shaft and adapted to normally maintain said sign plate in an elevated vertical position and when released to allow said sign plate to automatically swing to a lowered vertical position.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

JOSEPH KUHN. Witnesses:

O. H. RABsAG, K. H; BUTLER. 

